Dark Days: Order 44
by Mr. Inkpot
Summary: Yoda and the Emperor fought each other for the future of the galaxy after the horrors of Order 66. But they've fought each other before in a struggle lost in the past. A struggle known as Order 44.
1. Part I

Dark Days: Order 44

Yoda and the Emperor fought each other for the future of the galaxy. On opposing sides. Little do the other Jedi know Yoda's fought the same man before in a struggle lost in the past.

Yoda could feel the dark side closing in on him. The atmosphere had grown tense. The air was still and stained with the scent of blood. Fresh blood. _Jedi blood_. The screams of fallen warriors echoed through his mind, tearing at his senses and making it impossible for him to think. In the confusion and the distress, the Jedi Master's small knobbly walking stick slipped through his fingers and clattered to the floor. He fell against a wall and closed his eyes, breathing deeply, fighting back the pandemonium that was filling his chest with pure agony. The pain and the loss were only half of Yoda's troubles. Fear bubbled up above the rest, oozing through his body like a pebble slowly sinking to the bottom of a lake. This had happened once before. It was fear of the _known _that was consuming the frail Jedi Master's ancient heart the most. For Yoda knew what this meant. This very incident had been covered up once before, intentionally forgotten, wiped clean from records. Only last time they had called it Order 44…

Yoda was sprinting through an oriental garden. Tailing him were two agents of the Sith race, both of whom were encased in black suits of armour and riding identical state-of-the-art speeders. The youthful Jedi Master's blade was glowing green and held up above his head, deflecting the torrent of gunfire that was pelting him from every direction. He knew he mustn't stop. He knew he mustn't be afraid. But most importantly of all, he knew what had to be done. An agent suddenly sprang up in front of him, gun raised and ready to fire. Yoda deflected the bullets that swam towards him, leapt up over the agent and brought his lightsaber down on its black helmet. It slumped to the floor, narrowly avoiding the two speeder's as they soared over the limp form. Yoda raced on, cutting down more soldier's as he bounced through the fog and the bullets, faced fixed firmly ahead. One of the speeder's accelerated, edging forwards and catching Yoda round the waist. The Jedi Master lost balance and, with no other alternative, clawed onto the metal surface, still clutching his green blade. The pilot shot a line of bullets down towards him. Yoda narrowly avoided them with a flourish of his lightsaber and gathered enough strength to swing himself up and onto the pilot's seat. The pilot, attempting to steer the speeder and defend himself at the same time, shot desperately behind him, but Yoda's skill was no match for a mere soldier. A steaming black helmet fell to the base of the chaser, leaving a steaming body behind on the seat. Yoda knocked the pilot into the onslaught below and gained a quick understanding of the controls in front of him. He manoeuvred the speeder out of the line of fire and sped through a patch of undergrowth, leaving the agents with nothing but a coil of fading smoke. Yoda kicked hard at the pedals, his eyes screwed up in concentration. The Sith Lord could not be far from here. As long as Yoda was still alive, Order 44 would not succeed.


	2. Part II

Palpatine was looking out over the planet of Wiltang from a viewing platform, a planet that was consumed by a sea of dense fol

Palpatine was looking out over the planet of Wiltang from a viewing platform, a planet that was consumed by a sea of dense foliage. Small starships were racing through the trees, lines of red laser bullets soaring through the mass undergrowth and causing mini explosions when they reached their targets. The Sith Lord smiled with apparent pleasure as a Jedi Speeder capsized and smashed into a thick, scaly trunk. Order 44 was running smoothly, as he had foreseen.

Palpatine's features were smooth, but his face was somehow twisted and warped and sunken. He had flat prominent cheek bones, but they were subtly lined with small creases and marks. His eyes were shiny and alert, but they were somehow sunken and older-looking than they should have been for his age. For Palpatine was a Sith Lord still very much in his youth. He was wearing a light brown cape, the hood of which covered most of his curly blonde hair, which was already streaked with grey.

Palpatine watched closely as a small green man wearing brown robes raced past on a Speeder, leaving a trail of coiling smoke behind him. The force was strong with this one, Palpatine thought carefully.

A small boy wearing loose-fitting clothing and a small shabby helmet suddenly appeared at Palpatine's side. His face was dotted with freckles.

"Ah, Master Tarkin, you have news for me young one?" Palpatine slurred, smiling down at the youngster and revealing a set of crooked teeth. The boy nodded quickly.

"Yes Uncle Palpatine. One of the Jedi Knights has escaped death and plans to kill you," the youngster said anxiously, staring up at Palpatine with wide eyes.

"Indeed, young one. I have foreseen this. He will not fight me and walk away alive," Palpatine said calmly, looking back out over the planet. "Order 44 will be the extinction of the Jedi Knights. Nobody will survive this, my young friend. Not even your father. You were right to join my allegiance."

"My father is a traitor. The Jedi are scum," Tarkin said coldly, adjusting his helmet and grimacing. Palpatine laughed harshly.

"One day, when my dreams of an Empire are realised, I will make you a fine General," Palpatine said fondly, watching as four or five speeders raced past down below.

Two agents of the Sith, both wearing black outfits, marched towards Palpatine and Tarkin from the opposite end of the platform. Both were clutching guns.

"Your Majesty, a small cruiser of Jedi Knights has escaped into the atmosphere," said one of the agents in a rough monotone. The Sith Lord scowled, glaring up at the darkening sky with his sunken eyes.

"Aboard the cruiser included the valuable Jedi Padawan, Mace Windu," the other agent informed the Sith Lord with the same rough monotone.

Palpatine moved smoothly past Tarkin and the agents, dipping his pale, clawed fingers into the inside of his robes and pulling out a small, metal tube.

"I will make sure that no more Jedi are as fortunate," he spat, and soon his figure was swallowed up by darkness.

Yoda felt a tremor in his heart. A dark force was approaching.


End file.
